Questions & Answers

In this section I'll try to answer your questions. Call, email or use the comment form on my Contact page.

Washington County Teachers Association

Here are the questions I received from the Washington County Teachers Association and the answers I submitted .

School Board Candidate Questionnaire – 2016

1. Why are you seeking office as a member of the Board of Education? What experience best prepares you to be a member of the elected Board?

I decided to seek re-election because I am passionate about learning and public education, and I have a sincere desire to continue to put my knowledge, time, skill sets, and talents to use serving the county that has been my home since birth. As a retired educator whose experience is broad and deep, I want to continue to work on behalf of ALL of Washington County’s children with the goal of providing them the best possible educational opportunities while addressing the concerns of taxpayers.

What has prepared me to be a member of the elected board is: my first term as an elected board member; my work on Board committees (I have served on all committees and have chaired the Finance Committee and the Facilities Committee); my participation in the Maryland Association of Boards of Education (MABE) Boardsmanship Academy sessions and Leadership I and II programs; and my dedicated service as an educator for 35 years with WCPS, which included experience in the classroom and at the central office. Also, I believe my experience training, developing, mentoring, and evaluating teachers, writing curriculum and assessments, managing dollar programs and budgets, serving as a consultant for MSDE and the Chesapeake Coalition for Essential Schools in the area of school reform, and serving as an adjunct instructor for Frostburg State University supervised student interns have contributed to my preparedness.

I was born and raised in Washington County – the daughter of the late Hillary Henson Price and the late Charles E. Price (former Sheriff of Washington County. I grew up in Hagerstown on North Mulberry Street and Jonathan Street. I was educated K-12 in Washington County Public Schools. I graduated from North Hagerstown High School in 1968. I consider myself a life-long learner. I hold the following degrees: A.A. degree in education from Hagerstown Junior College, B.A. in Elementary Education with a concentration in Social Studies grades 1-9 from Shepherd College, M.A. in Reading with certification as a Reading Specialist K-12 from Hood College. I completed post graduate studies in curriculum and instruction and reading through the University of Maryland.

I began my career with WCPS in 1974 and retired from WCPS in 2009. My thirty-five year career provided me the opportunity to work with students, parents, teachers, and administrators in schools across Washington County. I’ve served in 16 of Washington County's public schools as well as in the central office as an administrator. I’ve worked successfully as a classroom teacher, an instructional specialist, a student achievement specialist, and the coordinator of WCPS’s Title I program.

In my retirement, before serving on the BOE, I worked as an educational consultant in the area of school reform for the Maryland State Department of Education and the Chesapeake Coalition for Essential Schools, and as an Adjunct Faculty Member at Frostburg State University.

Throughout my career I was an active member of the Washington County Teachers Association. I’ve served as a building rep; a member of the Board of Directors, Scholarship Committee, Common Concerns Committee, and a negotiating team.

I have served on many WCPS committees and task forces and have volunteered my time with the Odyssey of the Mind and Destination Imagination creative problem solving organizations as a coach, judge, problem captain, appraiser, and appraiser coordinator. Additional leadership experience includes having served as President of the Woodcrest Village Homeowners Association, and President of the Washington County Reading Council. I am a member of the Hagerstown Women’s Club and have served on its Board of Directors since becoming a member in 2010. I have served that organization three years as Recording Secretary and have chaired and co-chaired several successful fund-raisers. Currently, I serve as co-chair of the Ways and Means Committee and was recently nominated First Vice-President elect.

I served for several years on the board of the Washington County Education Foundation. I have served as a member of the Smithsburg Town Council's Ad Hoc Committee for Revising the Smithsburg Town Charter and as a member of Smithsburg's Parks and Improvement Commission.

3. Why should the educational community support your candidacy?

I have been an advocate for children, excellence in teaching, and fair treatment of educators and public school employees my entire adult life. I have been a member of WCTA/MSTA/NEA for my entire career – even after moving to an administrative position at the Central Office. Throughout my lengthy career as an educator, I have demonstrated involvement and commitment to public education, our school system, and our community, through service on various task forces and joint committees. I have an understanding of the issues that face public schools and believe in collaboration among stakeholders to find solutions to problems and improve the status quo. Throughout my first term on the BOE, I have shown support for teachers and the other employees of WCPS.By supporting me and like-minded candidates, the dynamics of the elected Board of Education can change, and a more collaborative, respectful working relationship with teachers can be created.

4. Do you think Maintenance of Effort (MOE) should be waived by the state/counties during economic downturns?

By the state – no. The county would have to prove extreme distress before any MOE waiver should be considered. Consideration to waive MOE should only occur under the most dire circumstances. Should the state or a county request a waiver, the leaders should be held accountable to justify such a request.

5. In the last year, how many times have you visited a Washington County Public School or classroom or attended a Board of Ed meeting?

In the last year, classroom visits have been few. School visits have been mostly after-hours for events. However, I have had many conversations with teachers and administrators.

In my entire first term so far, I have missed one day of regularly scheduled BOE meetings due to illness and another while attending the National School Boards Association conference in San Diego, California. My attendance at Board meetings, Board committee meetings and work sessions has been excellent.

6. Recruiting and retaining high-quality, employees is critically important to our success as a school system. Please describe your plan for recruiting new instructional staff and for keeping our experienced staff here.

An extremely important part of recruiting and retaining high quality employees is to show respect for our current employees by treating them as professionals and compensating them for that professionalism. To increase our employee candidate pool we should continue to expand the current recruitment efforts, reach out to potential candidates through community networks, offer signing bonuses, and ensure the WCPS workplace and our community are welcoming to diversity. I believe the single most important variable in a child’s success in school is the teacher. I believe that attracting, supporting, and retaining teachers of the highest quality is extremely important to the success of our school system.

7. What actions would you take to continue to provide quality health care benefits to employees while keeping the costs affordable to employees and the Board?

It is important to work closely with employee groups to monitor the quality of current benefits and to continue joint committees to seek and select alternatives when warranted.

8. What, in your opinion, are the top unmet needs of our public school system?

Our system has deferred maintenance that needs to be addressed. This backlog of projects requires adept prioritizing and budgeting.Our system needs to continue find ways to more appropriately and effectively meet the needs of special populations of students - to improve upon the status quo. We need appropriate and effective support for our English Language Learners and for our elementary students who because of behavioral issues cannot function in a mainstream classroom and cause the learning environment of the majority to be less than ideal.

9. What are your top three (3) priorities for Washington County Public Schools? How would you address these priorities?

My three top priorities, in no particular order, are:

Increase achievement and equity for ALL students, especially our most vulnerable, to ensure that our students graduate high school prepared for success in the job market or to higher education and are able to live as good citizens. As a board member, this would continue to be my overall priority. Every decision I make would be weighed in terms of this priority.

Improve the communication and the relationships between the BOE and its stakeholders, particularly the parents/families of our students, our employee groups, and the County Commissioners, and to allow for more collaboration.

See that the roll-out of the “Digital Learning Plan” is successful by ensuring that teachers have the tools and training they need to be knowledgeable, competent, and confident in using the devices in instruction, and that the costs associated with the plan are in line with the funds that were budgeted.

I would address these priorities in informal and formal settings with my fellow board members and the superintendent, and I would work to have them incorporated into the superintendent’s annual goals.

10. Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) has replaced No Child Left Behind. Do you support the ESSA program and if yes, how do you envision this process being developed and implemented?

I see ESSA as an improvement over NCLB. The following are some of the reasons why I believe this to be so. While ESSA does maintain annual assessments in grades 3-8 and high school it does reaffirm that states are in control of their standards and assessments. It eliminates AYP (annual yearly progress). It has no set of required federal sanctions. And, while it sets parameters, it gives states more flexibility in designing their school accountability system to best meet the needs of the students in the state.

Also, ESSA gives states the flexibility to work with stakeholders to determine how educators should be evaluated and supported. And, it authorizes a Preschool Development Grants Program through the Department of Health and Human Services.

I’m not certain what is meant by the question – How do you envision this process being developed and implemented? As I remember, when we as a system were faced with NCLB, the then superintendent, Dr. Morgan, held an informative “summit-type” meeting at HCC for staff and teacher representatives from each school. I attended as a teacher-leader. Together, we learned the requirements of NCLB, the changes the system would need to make to meet the requirements, and Dr. Morgan’s vision for how those changes would be implemented. A similar “summit” event would be beneficial in ensuring that all key players and stakeholders are knowledgeable of the requirements of ESSA and the plans our system and the state of Maryland have for meeting those requirements.

11. Federal, state and local mandates and initiatives are placing increasing time intensive responsibilities on all school employees. What ideas do you have to streamline, prioritize and reduce non-instructional work required of teachers?

My preference would be to work collaboratively with our teachers to identify the specific non-instructional burdens, to prioritize, and find solutions. One of the criteria on which we must base our local support for proposed state and federal legislation is the time burden it would generate for teachers.I am in favor of reinstituting the Common Concerns Committee or creating a committee similar which would include a member or members of the elected BOE.

12. What concrete steps do you advocate to increase citizen and parental involvement/support for our school system?

Stakeholder involvement has been an on-going concern for me, and I plan to continue to advocate for increased opportunities for the Board to receive input from students, parents, employees of the system, and members of the community and for increased collaboration. I believe that parental involvement in all parts of a child’s education is essential and should be encouraged and facilitated.

In a recent Policy Committee meeting, I pointed out the need to better solicit public feedback on policy changes and make finding policy information easier. I have advocated for the reinstitution of Coffee and Conversation, and I have spoken with the superintendent about the Board holding regional meetings much like the “listening sessions” he had held. I have expressed my support for more town meetings and more Board (open) work sessions. I have suggested stakeholder surveys be conducted, especially on school and CES culture and climate and.

Board advisory committees should be revitalized and utilized more, and each board advisory committee should have not only a staff member as a liaison, but a board member as well.

13. What is the role of a board of education member in securing funding?

The role of a board member is to be actively involved in the budget process. A board member should be closely scrutinizing the superintendent’s proposed budget and ensuring that the board’s goals and priorities are reflected in the budget before voting to adopt it. The BOE budget should be a vehicle for accomplishing established priorities not simply a spending plan. It is my role as a board member to articulate the needs of the system to our County Commissioners, to be able to justify the bottom line, and to ensure that the budget that is presented for funding has been developed in the best interest of our students and our community while respecting the financial concerns of taxpayers and being mindful of the economic conditions of our county.

14. What ideas do you have to ensure the adequate use of existing school space to avoid overcrowding in some schools while unused classrooms exist at other schools?

Oversight of the facilities planning process is important in order to avoid the upheaval of redistricting. I am not in favor of using magnet programs to encourage parents to “self-redistrict.” During the recent redistricting process, I scrutinized and questioned the information presented by staff to board members and listened attentively to the input and feedback provided by parents. I will continue to keep an eye on the enrollment numbers in our schools, ask questions, and advocate for what is best for our students.

I favor maintaining neighborhood schools, not closing schools and moving the population elsewhere. Recent redistricting efforts should have addressed any overcrowding. Unused space in some schools could be adapted for administrative office use and serve as CES satellite offices or house “wrap-around” service providers.

15. What is your view of privatizing or outsourcing positions currently filled by BOE employees (i.e. transportation or school maintenance)?I oppose outsourcing or privatization of positions currently held by BOE employees.

16. Can you think of any existing programs or initiatives that WCPS currently offers that should be abolished or scaled back? Any programs that WCPS should consider adding?

Until programs and initiatives are properly assessed, I, as a Board member, have to rely on the information that is given to me by the superintendent and his staff as to the appropriateness and effectiveness of programs and initiatives. Parents and teachers are, of course, another source of information. In the past, I have questioned the so called “literacy initiative” touted by the superintendent in the early years of his tenure, the effectiveness of the elementary summer school program, and Stride Academy. Currently, I have questions about the status of the virtual high school.

17. How should the BOE assess the effectiveness of programs and initiatives?

This is an area where I feel the Board has fallen short. To me, it is not so much how the BOE should assess the effectiveness of programs and initiatives, as it is that the BOE absolutely should be routinely conducting assessments of programs and initiatives. The how can be researched, discussed, and decided upon after the need to do so has been acknowledged by the majority and committed to. Of course, any assessment of a program or initiative should include the impact on students, student achievement, staff, and the community. In general, data is important in any assessment, but no assessment should be based on numbers alone. Stakeholder involvement and input in the assessment of programs and initiatives is extremely important. I recognize the importance of assessing programs and initiatives and will continue to advocate for those assessments.

18. If elected, what types of relationship to you plan to maintain with the groups that represent the systems employee groups?

My interaction with our system’s employees will continue to be open, honest, and respectful. I value two-way communication with all stake-holders. As an individual, I will continue to seek input and feedback on decision-making that will impact system employees.

If re-elected, I will continue to work for improved relations with our employee groups. If re- elected, and the board majority shifts to a more open-minded composition, I envision a BOE that treats all employees with respect. I am firm in my belief that WCPS employees should be encouraged to speak up about their concerns regarding instruction, curriculum, safety, and any other issues that affect our students and schools, and our employees; and no one should ever fear reprisal or retribution for having done so.

I am in favor of more collaboration with our employee groups. If re-elected, I would continue to work towards building mutual trust in negotiations, effective two-way communication, the sharing of quality information, and shared decision-making.

19. The current relationship the Board of Education has with the County Commissioners has fractured in recent months/years. What do you propose as a fix for that relationship?

Collaborative relationships are built on trust and respect and take time to cultivate and maintain. From my point of view, the current BOE leadership is responsible for much of the deterioration of the relationship with our commissioners. So, the ultimate fix is in the hands of the voters.

As one board member, I’ll continue treating everyone with respect and be willing to commit the time to have meaningful, open-minded discussions and dialogues during which quality information is shared. As an individual BOE member, I have built relationships of mutual respect with several of the commissioners. I will encourage more informal work sessions with our County Commissioners, especially earlier in the budget timeline.

20. What is your view of Right to Work? Explain.

I do not support Right to Work laws. In general, unions should be able to negotiate contracts with companies calling for employees to pay dues to support the union’s negotiations with management. In the public education sector, I support agency fees.

21. Do you support the Supreme Court’s decision in the Friedrich’s Case? Explain.The recent 4-4 decision handed down in this case resulted in a win for the California Teachers Association, preserving agency fees. In general, I support agency fees.

22. Please mark the appropriate box.

Comments:

23. Do you support or oppose the following topics as items for negotiations?

Comments:I don’t believe curriculum should be a topic addressed in negotiations. However, I do support seeking input from all stakeholders, especially teachers, when making decisions about curriculum.Topics eligible for negotiation are limited by state law.